Going backwards from the mechanical world. Mechanicism and irreversibility in nineteenth century physics

In the nineteenth century, there was a widespread ideal of giving mechanical explanations in physics. A problem appeared when it turned out to be difficult to give a mechanical explanation of irreversible processes. Because the laws of mechanics are all reversible, there can be no irreversible processes in purely mechanical systems. While most physicists in Britain made a pragmatic choice to reconcile mechanicism and irreversibility by making concessions to both, on the continent the problem grew into a broad philosophical issue and was put forward as a reason for complete rejection of the mechanistic world view. I argue that this could happen because different ideas were involved about what the goal and methods of science should be: the conflict between mechanicism and irreversibility was also a conflict between the ideal of a science based on solid theoretical foundations and the ideal of a phenomenological science which is close to experience.